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COP30 Update – November 18

by Climate and Clean Air Coalition Secretariat (CCAC) - 19 November, 2025
COP30 Continues  

Political momentum sharpened in Belém on Tuesday as countries staked out clearer positions heading into the final stretch of negotiations. A coalition of 82 countries issued one of the summit’s strongest interventions to date, calling for a global roadmap to phase out fossil fuels across coal, oil, and gas,  a move that significantly raised expectations for the outcome document. Also yesterday, the COP30 Presidency announced a bold two-stage strategy: aiming for one package of decisions to be delivered by Wednesday, covering formerly off-agenda contentious issues such as fossil-fuel transition and climate finance, and a final wrap-up of other outstanding issues by Friday. But even with this new momentum, several developing countries are warning that COP30 remains “poisoned” by unresolved disputes over climate finance commitments, transparency, and delivery, particularly for adaptation and long-term support systems.

Super Pollutants at COP30  

 

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Photo credit: Government of Canada

 

COP30’s momentum on fast methane action was on full display across a series of high-level events, dialogues, and bilateral meetings that showcased how governments, communities, and partners are moving from commitments to implementation. From regional seminars in the Amazon to zero-waste mobilization, livestock transitions, and country-level planning through the CCAC Super Pollutant Country Action Accelerator, the day highlighted a consistent theme: cutting methane quickly is both achievable and indispensable for climate stability, cleaner air, and stronger local economies.

 

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Photo credit: Government of Canada 

 

GAIA hosted a press conference to launch the Global Methane Status Report, bringing together the Global Methane Hub, the CCAC, zero-waste practitioners, and waste-picker leadership to spotlight the urgent need for accelerated action in the waste sector. The session featured opening remarks from Martina Otto, who highlighted that while global methane emissions remain on the rise, full implementation of existing plans could still deliver the largest decline in methane ever recorded, and that the waste sector offers some of the most immediate, affordable opportunities to bend the curve through food waste prevention, composting, source separation, and improved disposal practices. Speakers from GAIA, POLIS, and the International Alliance of Waste Pickers reinforced that inclusive, community-led zero-waste strategies and just-transition approaches are critical to unlocking this potential, calling on governments to redirect climate finance, strengthen regulations, and recognize waste pickers as essential partners in delivering rapid and equitable methane reductions. 

 

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Photo credit: Super Pollutant Action Alliance, Globale Methane Hub, Clean Air Fund

 

The Climate Emergency Brake Seminar,  Amazon Edition, hosted by the Global Methane Hub and Uma Gota no Oceano with partners including Editora Globo and the Instituto de Desenvolvimento e Gestão, brought together experts, public officials, researchers, Indigenous and quilombola leaders, and civil society to map out concrete pathways for rapid methane reduction. Across four panels, participants highlighted the major levers for climate action in the Amazon: transforming agriculture through science, governance, and innovation; unlocking the waste sector’s potential through financing, decentralized technologies, and socio-productive inclusion; and advancing a just energy transition built on clear rules, robust monitoring, and strong institutions.

 

At the Super Pollutant Pavilion, the event Cutting Methane, Boosting Livelihoods: A South–South Dialogue on Livestock Futures brought together government representatives, technical experts, and practitioners from across the Global South to identify actionable pathways for reducing livestock methane while strengthening productivity, resilience, and rural livelihoods. Opening remarks from Martina Otto drew on the newly released Global Methane Status Report, underscoring that while methane emissions continue to rise, full implementation of existing plans would deliver the largest decline in history, and that agriculture must achieve at least a 20–25% methane reduction to stay within 1.5°C. Country representatives then exchanged lessons on policies, technologies, and enabling conditions needed to move from commitments to implementation, followed by an interactive Q&A and a closing reflection on shared priorities for 2026. The dialogue emphasized that progress requires strong national frameworks, access to finance, capacity building, and South–South cooperation, key elements of the emerging RAIZ Call to Action and the CCAC’s forthcoming FIRST Initiative. 

 

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Photo credit:  Cambodia Ministry of Environment

 

Capping the day, Martina Otto met with Cambodia’s Minister of Environment H.E. Dr. Eang Sophallet and Nigeria’s Director of Climate Change Dr. Iniobong Abiola-Awe to advance the rollout of their CCAC Super Pollutant Country Action Accelerator programmes, laying the groundwork for dedicated national units poised to fast-track high-impact methane and air-quality action.

 

COP30 NDC Watch

 

As of the mid-point of COP30, 120 countries have submitted at least an initial version of their 2025 Nationally Determined Contributions, and a clear trend is emerging: countries are expanding coverage of super pollutants within their overall mitigation targets and identifying the specific measures needed to achieve them. Since June, the share of countries including methane mitigation measures in their NDCs has increased from 65% to 81%, with 84% of all new NDCs (NDC 3.0) now addressing methane in at least one major emitting sector.

 

This momentum aligns with findings from the recently launched 2025 Global Methane Status Report, which shows that measures included in NDCs and methane action plans as of early June could deliver an 8 percent reduction in global methane emissions by 2030 compared with 2020 levels. Additional measures added since June would further strengthen progress toward meeting the Global Methane Pledge.  

 

Countries are also describing the air quality and health co-benefits of these actions more explicitly, with Nigeria, for example, estimating that implementing its NDC could prevent between 21,208 and 29,971 premature deaths in 2030 and deliver more than $US 10 billion in economic benefits from reduced mortality, morbidity, and productivity losses. Other countries are also highlighting air quality in the adaptation components of their NDCs, with Rwanda, Cambodia, and Côte d’Ivoire among those emphasizing the importance of air quality monitoring for protecting public health.  

 

Read the full NDC Watch here

Global Methane Status Report Online Launch  

 

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Photo credit:  Government of Canada

 

The CCAC Secretariat will be hosting two online launches of the Global Methane Status Report on 24 November, where Chapter Lead Authors will unpack key findings of the report. Tune in to hear directly from the experts driving global action and to engage with them in real time.

In Case You Missed It  

 

New analysis published at COP30 by the Climate Action Tracker and Climate Analytics reveals that if governments fully implement their pledges to triple renewable energy, double energy-use efficiency and sharply cut methane emissions by 2030, the world could avert nearly 1 °C of warming this century, bringing projected heating down from about 2.6 °C to roughly 1.7 °C 

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